Shaunie and her current husband, Pastor Keion Henderson, are both formerly divorced people who left their prior marriages with children.
The “Basketball Wives” star shares five kids with her ex-husband, Shaquille O’Neal while Keion shares a daughter with his ex-wife, ex-wife Felicia Henderson.
In a Sept. 20 episode of Cam Newton’s “Funky Friday” podcast, Pastor Henderson breaks down what his role is to Shaunie’s children and reveals what his relationship is like with her the former NBA star.
In the later part of the nearly two-hour and 46-minute video, Henderson explains how he and Shaquille collaborate on being present for Shaq and Shaunie’s children.
“We went to Me’arah’s senior night and walked her on the court together,” he said, referencing Shaq and Shaunie’s youngest child. He continued, “When she announced what school she was going to he and I were discussing about when he would speak and when I would speak. I mean, bro’ I and he. We both know ain’t nothing to fight about because everything that happened, happened before we met each other.”
Shaunie and Shaq were married from 2002 to 2011 and had a blended family of six children of their own.
Shaunie’s son Myles was young when she began dating Shaq, who had a daughter, Taahirah, both from previous relationships. Together, they raised four more children, Shareef, Shaqir, Amirah, and Me’arah, in the O’Neal household.
During the marriage, Shaq filed for divorce from Shaunie first in 2007, but before finalizing, the two were able to reconcile and eventually call the divorce off.
That only lasted for about two more years before Shaunie filed for divorce in 2009 and the two settled in 2011. It was later revealed by both Shaq and Shaunie that his infidelities contributed to the end of their marriage.
But with all of that being behind them, the executive producer of “Basketball Wives” remarried Henderson, who is senior pastor of The Lighthouse Church and Ministries, in 2022.
Further explaining his relationship with Shaq, he told Newton, “He a full grown man, I’m a full grown man. He’s always respected me. I’ve always respected him. I think he would say the same. Ain’t nothing but love. No issues. Grown people don’t do that.”
“So we’ve spoken. We’ve had events together. We good. We cool,” he added.
Henderson was married to his ex-wife Felicia Henderson for nine years and the two had one daughter together and two children that he stepfathered. So when it comes to figuring out his role in Shaunie’s childrens’ lives, he’s already got some experience in the blended family department.
He said, “You got to know what the child needs. Because my wife’s children, some of them were old enough – they didn’t need a father they needed a friend. So I ain’t walk in the door trying to be their dad. They got that.” By the time Henderson and Shaunie tied the knot, four of five her children were adults — Me’arah just turned 18 earlier this year.
With the knowledge that most of Shaunie’s children were adults, Henderson figured out a strategy to develop a relationship with them. “I found out what each one of the children needed individually and I’ve morphed myself into the void,” he said. “The problem with most people is they’re trying to fill corners that got furniture. You just got to be what they need.”
“So I just became what they needed,” he said and it looks like his strategy worked. He continued, “Our relationships are amazing. When I say amazing, I mean amazing. I’ve never had a problem, a side word, an issue, ‘that ain’t my daddy.’ We haven’t had one of those moments in the history of our relationship.”
